Four Port Arthur City Councilmen, Raymond Scott, Harold Doucet, Kerry Thomas and John Beard, held a press conference Friday to expose what they say is a corrupt city manager search.
Mercer Group is the company that is conducting the nationwide search for the City Manager position, and the four councilmen say Mercer agreed not to hire someone local.
However, someone who works internally at City Hall is in the running for the position.
The four councilmen say someone added that person's name back in the running during a meeting after council agreed the applicant shouldn't get the position.
"This is too important to mess up, too important for games and hidden agendas in the process," says Councilman John Beard.
The four men spoke about a council who makes decisions behind closed doors in a good ole boy system.
They called for citizens to demand more transparency.
They wouldn't say who they believe is responsible for the corruption or who the internal worker is that is up for the City Manager position.
However, current Assistant City Manager Rebecca Underhill tells 12 News HD she is the applicant for the position that is under fire.
Despite claims that the new City Manager should have eight years experience in that position, she says that's not what the job advertisement says online.
She feels she is qualified to be city manager.
"I wanted to go through the process like every other candidate that's all. I don't know how my name got out there, and I hate that it did because that's not the way the process was supposed to work," says Underhill.
Underhill says she never told Mayor Deloris Prince or any council members to consider her for the position.
Now she and two other candidates are up for the job. Interviews are expected to start Tuesday.
